PELICANS. 
285 
beak, which is of great length, much flattened, and marked by a number of 
furrows. To the lower mandible is affixed a large dilatable pouch of great 
capacity; so that the whole beak may be compared to a bag-net, to which the 
upper mandible acts as a lid. The extremity of the latter ends in a slightly hooked 
knob, of which the horny covering is from time to time shed. The body is very 
EUROPEAN PELICAN. 
massive, the neck long and comparatively slender, the head small, and the legs are 
short with very elongated toes. The wings, in which the third quill is the longest, 
are large and broad; and the tail, which contains from eighteen to twenty-four 
feathers, is short, broad, and rounded. Although thick, the general plumage is 
remarkable for its harshness and roughness, the feathers of the breast ending in 
narrow points; while on the back of the head there is generally a helmet-like crest. 
The adults of the two sexes are nearly similar in coloration, but the young are 
